Cuihua had always regarded Pei Huaiche as her husband in her heart, and the servants in the residence, seeing that Master Huai was deeply favored by the Princess and admiring his talents and abilities, had come to treat him as a proper master of the household in both overt and subtle ways.
But when it came down to it, his nominal status was merely that of a bedchamber favorite. Everyone understood this tacitly and never brought up the marital bond between Cuihua and him in open discussion.
Thus, Li Jing's address of "brother-in-law" and his self-reference as "your humble brother-in-law" was particularly delicate.
Anyone could tell it was an absurd statement, but he was still a prince, however inconsequential. By voluntarily lowering himself before Pei Huaiche, he had invisibly placed Pei Huaiche in a position where it would be difficult to refuse him without giving offense.
Baodian and the others fell silent for a moment, but Cuihua lowered her gaze in contemplation.
She turned to ask Zhang Tai, "When you saw Li Jing, did he address my husband… as 'Brother-in-law Huai Che'?"
Zhang Tai hastily replied, "When speaking directly with this servant, he did not use such an address. But when he sent that Xiaobi to deliver a message, it seemed… he did use that form of address."
Cuihua's brow furrowed slightly. "Seemed?"
Zhang Tai did not understand why she was so insistently fixated on such details, but since she had asked, he answered honestly: "When Prince Jin met with this servant, he was not wearing a face veil. It was this servant's first time glimpsing Prince Jin's true appearance, and this servant was truly overwhelmed with trepidation, so I did not dare raise my head to look closely, nor did I hear clearly…"
Cuihua: "…"
She fell silent for a moment, thinking to herself that this world truly was one where three people spreading a rumor could create a tiger, where public opinion could melt metal.
She had now witnessed firsthand how a rumor, after circulating for over a decade, could evolve into something no one dared to question.
Though Li Jing's face bore the Red Lotus Pattern tattoo, his features were actually quite delicate and handsome. In particular, those smiling almond-shaped eyes that resembled both the Empress and herself—when the corners lifted slightly, he appeared strikingly fair-skinned with rosy lips and white teeth, so refined that he didn't even look like a boy's countenance.
Even when he smiled and revealed those four canine teeth that supposedly showed his "demonic nature had not yet faded," there was nothing ferocious about them—they were hardly frightening at all.
Yet the reputation of the "demonic seed" preceded him. During their idle conversation yesterday, she had noticed that even Li Jing himself seemed to accept the notion that he was hideous to behold, thinking it only natural that the capital folk who had heard too many rumors would fear that a single glance at him might shorten their lives.
Thinking of how Li Jing had been unable to hide his disappointment yesterday, the anger in Cuihua's heart unexpectedly dissipated somewhat. She turned to Huang Hu, her tone much gentler: "Before Huai Che left with Xiaobi for Prince Jin's residence, did he say anything else to you?"
Huang Hu, seeing that she seemed not to harbor any blame, breathed a slight sigh of relief: "Master Huai only instructed this servant to report to the Princess that you need not worry—he would not truly be gone for several days, and would return by the hour of wu at the latest. Afterward, he did not take the carriage Prince Jin's residence had sent to fetch him, but instead called for our residence's own coachman to accompany him. Prince Jin's carriage indeed could not fit a wheelchair."
Cuihua nodded slightly. By now she was certain that Pei Huaiche's going was not because he had no other recourse and was forced to comply.
Just as Zhang Tai could not openly rebuff Li Jing's face in Prince Jin's residence, Pei Huaiche, being in her residence, naturally had her backing as well.
No matter how Li Jing addressed him in his verbal decree, Pei Huaiche's willingness to return the courtesy was a matter of goodwill—he would certainly not be manipulated by a single nonsensical remark from Li Jing, a prince without power, without favor, and without substance.
Moreover, having been married for two years, she knew his abilities and capabilities better than anyone. So when she heard Huang Hu say that he had not only brought his own people but had also stated his return time, she knew that if he was going, he must have some plan in mind.
Though during the time he was away from the residence, she still could not fully set her heart at ease.
Baodian, observing that although her expression had softened, a trace of worry still lingered between her brows, softly brought up a matter to comfort her: "Does Your Highness know? That Xiaobi's real name is Liu Qingyao—he is the younger brother of Lord Liu Qingzi."
Cuihua was momentarily startled, then remembered that on her journey to Xiangjing, she had indeed heard Liu Qingzi mention some of her family's old affairs.
Back then, her maternal grandfather had been convicted of crimes, the family had fallen into decline, and she had followed her mother into the palace service… This matched perfectly with what Xiaobi had said about "originally being the son of an official family" and "both my sister and I were pardoned by the Empress's grace, and I was ordered to serve Prince Jin, while my elder sister is now a close martial officer in Her Majesty's service."
Cuihua mused, "No wonder his features bear some resemblance to Lord Liu's. But I've never heard Lord Liu mention this younger brother. Could it be that the siblings do not have a good relationship?"
Baodian shook her head: "Quite the opposite—Lord Liu dotes dearly on this younger brother, who was punished with castration in his youth and entered the palace as a eunuch. It's just that before she came with this servant to escort you back to the capital, the two of them had just had a falling out."
Cuihua found it hard to imagine the always stern-faced Liu Qingzi sulking and ignoring someone: "Lord Liu… can she really act petulant with those close to her?"
Baodian sighed softly: "It's not that Lady Liu is being willful or throwing a tantrum; it's just that Xiaobi has always refused to accept her arrangements. After Lady Liu became an official, she repeatedly tried to find him a better path. Here in the capital, following any master would be better than following that Prince Jin. When arranging your residence this time, Her Majesty the Empress even allowed her to transfer Xiaobi to our Princess's estate. But who would have thought… he actually had the audacity to refuse again."
Cuihua suddenly understood: "So that's how it is. No wonder he recognized me at a glance on the street—Lady Liu must have mentioned me, saying I look very much like Mother Empress."
Baodian murmured: "That must be it. When I served His Majesty in the past, I saw him a few times as well. He looks like an exceptionally clever one, so I don't understand why he's so set in his ways, insisting on following Prince Jin to the bitter end."
Baodian had told Cuihua all this to put her at ease—after all, with the connection between Xiaobi and Liu Qingzi, he would surely know how much Pei Huaiche meant to her.
So no matter how unruly Li Jing was, since he knew full well that the Princess's estate was not something their Jin Prince's manor could afford to provoke, he wouldn't allow Li Jing to casually slight Pei Huaiche.
After hearing this, Cuihua's expression did indeed relax somewhat, though the reason for her ease was not quite what Baodian had imagined.
At dusk, the glow of sunset spread across the sky, and Pei Huaiche indeed returned as promised.
Cuihua had just finished making a kesi silk round fan and was sitting with various precious beads on her lap, selecting them to braid into a tassel for the fan handle.
The gems and pearls bestowed by the Empress each sparkled brilliantly, reflecting off her delicate pink fingertips and snow-white wrists.
To make her work easier, she had rolled her sleeves up to her elbows, revealing a section of smooth, cream-like forearm adorned with an exquisite gold bangle that made her skin look even finer.
Pei Huaiche sat quietly in his wheelchair as Huang Hu pushed him into her room. When Huang Hu, being tactful, withdrew and gently closed the door, his gaze fell upon her without any further concealment. Seeing her sitting safely in the warm glow of light and jewels, his Adam's apple moved almost imperceptibly with his thoughts.
Cuihua looked up, her autumn-water eyes sweeping over him from head to toe. Seeing that he was safe and sound from the tips of his hair to the hem of his clothes, she let out a soft breath of relief.
She set the fan and beads aside on the soft couch nearby, then hurried over to the wheelchair in three quick steps, bending down to sniff him.
Cuihua raised her almond-shaped eyes slightly, looking at him with inquiry: "Li Jing made you drink?"
Pei Huaiche met her gaze without hiding anything: "He didn't force me. He just had wine prepared when he kept me for dinner, saying it was to thank me for helping him catch the horse yesterday and assisting him with taming it today. He toasted me, and I could drink as I pleased. But I could tell the wine wasn't strong, so a little wouldn't hurt—I accompanied him with two cups."
Cuihua was quite satisfied with his honesty, and her tone softened accordingly: "Why do I feel like… you two get along quite well? He clearly treats you like a servant, ordering you around this way and that."
Pei Huaiche saw that although her words carried a hint of complaint, her expression didn't seem genuinely angry, so he explained gently: "He doesn't truly treat me as a servant. I could glimpse that much during our time together yesterday. Prince Jin not only doesn't understand the etiquette and formalities among the nobility, he's barely even familiar with how ordinary people handle social interactions."
Cuihua pressed her lips together. Actually, after her anger had subsided, she had slowly come to realize what Pei Huaiche was saying.
Before meeting Li Jing, she had thought that as someone who had returned from the common folk, she was probably the least royal-looking princess since the founding of the Great Liang Dynasty. That was why she had been especially diligent when learning etiquette from the governess these past few days, afraid of making a fool of herself at the Mid-Autumn palace banquet.
But Li Jing's existence had actually given her a sense of reassurance.
No matter how lacking she was, at least she knew how to read people's expressions and understood what could and couldn't be said. Li Jing, however, had no such sense at all—and thinking about it, that made sense. After being branded on the face, he probably rarely had the chance to interact with people normally.
Cuihua pouted: "True enough. He's a young man of fifteen or sixteen, yet he doesn't even know where the host's seat is at a banquet. Xiaobi may have taught him to read, but the characters he recognizes don't seem to be much more than what I know—he's not even as good as Baodian!"
Pei Huaiche recalled how yesterday Cuihua and Li Jing had huddled together, staring at the restaurant's menu for the duration of an incense stick without managing to recognize all the dish names, and he couldn't help but feel a little helpless again.
Li Jing did know some characters, but perhaps because Xiaobi—who had taught him—was also just a child at the time, he only recognized neat regular script. Unfortunately, the Zhaogu Pavilion they visited yesterday was particular about elegance in every detail, even using the flowing Lanting calligraphy style for their menus.
When Li Jing heard that Cuihua couldn't read, he had wanted to show off in front of his sister that he was "somewhat" literate, but the moment he took the menu, he was completely stumped.
In a certain sense, the reason Cuihua had been able to quickly grow familiar with Li Jing—even faster than with Li Chan and Li Yuan—was largely because she had found in him a rare sense of subtle superiority that she couldn't find in other nobles.
Pei Huaiche was silent for a moment, then spoke again: "Speaking of which, since Prince Jin accepted your gift, he originally wanted to prepare a return gift as well."
Cuihua looked up at his empty hands, her delicate brows furrowing slightly: "Where's the gift? Don't tell me you thought it was too shabby and declined it on my behalf?"
Her heart was pure and kind. Once she confirmed that Li Jing bore no ill will toward Pei Huaiche, she instead felt a trace of guilt for having previously misjudged her younger brother. So no matter what Li Jing sent in return, since it was her brother's thoughtful gesture, she would gladly accept it.
How could Pei Huaiche not anticipate her attitude toward this return gift? It was just that the "gift" Li Jing intended to send—he truly could not accept it.
He could only explain in a gentle tone: "It has nothing to do with whether it's shabby or not. He is, after all, a prince. Whatever he intends to give would hardly be looked down upon by a country bumpkin like me."
Cuihua blinked and agreed: "That's true… Before I came to the capital, I found everything I saw novel, but the things I thought were wonderful weren't even worthy of Baodian's notice."
Pei Huaiche nodded slightly and continued: "But Li Jing, afraid that the items he picked wouldn't catch your eye, insisted on pushing my wheelchair and taking me on a tour of his entire residence. He said I should pick freely according to your preferences, and then reasoned that the most impressive things in his residence were the decorations personally overseen by Her Majesty the Empress herself. He told me that even if I fancied the door panels or window lattices, he could have them dismantled on the spot for me."
Cuihua's expression froze for a moment before she murmured: "…That really can't be accepted. Not only would there be nowhere to put such things if we brought them back, but even bandits looting a house… wouldn't take the doors and windows apart!"
A faint trace of amusement flickered in Pei Huaiche's eyes as he continued: "Seeing that I adamantly refused to choose, he instructed Xiaobi to fetch silver from the residence's treasury. According to him, since I knew your preferences better than he did, it would be better for me to use the silver he provided to purchase something—that would count as his gesture of goodwill."
Cuihua was now even more certain that Li Jing hadn't deliberately been ordering Pei Huaiche around before. It was clear he truly didn't understand these social conventions—since when did siblings exchange gifts by directly giving each other silver?
No wonder Xiaobi had said yesterday that if Li Jing couldn't tame that horse, he would genuinely tie up its four hooves and dump it at the Sang residence's doorstep, all to curry favor with his beloved Third Miss Sang.
After a moment of speechlessness, Cuihua looked back at Pei Huaiche, genuine confusion rising in her eyes: "But why do you still seem to get along so well with him? Shouldn't someone as clever as you prefer to associate with equally clever people?"
Pei Huaiche didn't answer her directly but mused in return: "Do I seem… to get along well with him?"
Cuihua nodded vigorously, a strand of hair by her cheek swaying with the motion: "Yes! You've been explaining things on his behalf in everything you say, afraid I might misunderstand him. When he handles things poorly, you defend him. You even agreed to drink with him—I bet he can't say any fancy toasts either. The fact that you accepted those two cups means you find him agreeable, not just because he's my brother. Am I right?"
Pei Huaiche's deep gaze lingered on her resolute expression for a moment. A faint, barely perceptible curve formed at the corner of his thin lips, and a hint of wistful emotion seemed to flicker through his eyes.
His voice was low and slow: "I just think… he's rather interesting."
Perhaps it was because he had led armies into battle on multiple occasions and had always held command over more than eighty percent of the nation's military forces during his regency—whenever he encountered exceptionally talented soldiers, he couldn't help but cherish their potential.
Moreover, in the past thirty years, he had seen too much hypocritical pleasantry and experienced enough scheming among the clever. Instead, he found it rather refreshing that this young man—born into the imperial family and having endured many hardships—could still grow into someone of such kind disposition, untouched by the mire around him.
Of course, more importantly, thanks to today's visit to the Jin Prince's residence, he had gleaned additional clues from Li Jing and Xiaobi's words, allowing him to piece together a clearer picture of the matters hidden beneath the surface peace of the Liang imperial family.
He could almost be certain that the Empress's rejection of Li Jing was mostly for show, and the person for whom the Empress would sacrifice her own flesh and blood in compromise must also be the one who benefited most from Li Jing's facial branding.
But these matters—his little wife didn't need to know for now. As he'd said before, yesterday he had only promised her that whenever she asked, he would try not to fabricate lies to deceive her. So he needed to find a way to simply prevent her from asking about the things he didn't wish to discuss yet.
As expected, Cuihua was led astray by his words, a puzzled expression forming on her face: "You don't happen to enjoy the feeling of teasing fools, do you? No wonder you're so fond of me too!"
Pei Huaiche lowered his head, a low chuckle rolling from his throat: "You're not foolish."
Though she didn't know what was on his mind, she could always keenly perceive his attitude toward people and matters. This kind of perceptive intuition—search the entire Great Yuan and you wouldn't find a second person with it.
As for Li Jing, he was indeed somewhat foolish. But if Pei Huaiche truly had the inclination, he could probably toy with nine out of ten people in the world as if they were fools. So fools held no particular novelty for him at all.
After a moment's pause, he picked out the one reason that could be voiced at this time from among many: "Hearing him call me 'brother-in-law' brings joy to my heart. As for the rest, let him say whatever he pleases—whatever he says, I find it quite amusing."